NFL Pro Bowl’s Future in Jeopardy as Fans Boo, Players Criticize

By Eben Novy-Williams -
Apr 26, 2012

The future of the National Football
League’s annual Pro Bowl may be in jeopardy following diminished
television ratings and criticism from league players and
executives and booing from fans in attendance.

The 2013 game is scheduled for Jan. 27, though no location
for the contest has been announced. League spokesman Greg Aiello
said today in a statement on his Twitter page that the NFL was
in discussions with the league’s players association regarding
the game’s future.

“No decision has been made on this season’s game,” Aiello
said.

The Pro Bowl, played following the regular season by teams
composed of the top vote-getters from players, coaches and the
public, has come under criticism for lack of effort and poor
quality of play.

Roger Goodell, the league’s commissioner, is “strongly
considering” suspending this year’s game, ESPN said today
citing an unidentified person. He recently asked players for
suggestions to improve the game, and told ESPN Radio earlier
this year that the league had to address the annual All-Star
game.

“We’re either going to have to improve the quality of what
we’re doing in the Pro Bowl or consider other changes, or even
considering eliminating the game if that’s the kind of quality
game we’re going to provide,” Goodell told ESPN’s Mike & Mike
in the Morning on Feb. 6, one week after the 2012 game. “If the
fans are responding negatively to what we’re doing, we better
listen.”

Should the game be suspended, the league would still
conduct balloting during the regular season, and instruct teams
to honor Pro Bowl incentive clauses by converting them into
player contracts, according to ESPN. The players chosen as the
best in each conference would likely be part of a ceremony
during Super Bowl week, the network said.

Union spokesman George Atallah did not respond to an e-mail
seeking comment on the status of negotiations with the league,
or what a canceled game could mean for players who have Pro Bowl
bonuses in their contracts.

“The Pro Bowl is an important tradition,” NFLPA President
Domonique Foxworth, who played last year with the Baltimore
Ravens, said today on his social network Twitter account. “We
are in talks with the league to improve and preserve the game
for our players and fans.”

Last season’s Pro Bowl, won 59-41 by the American Football
Conference in the highest scoring game in Pro Bowl history, was
watched by 7.9 percent of U.S. homes in the top 56 metered
television markets, an 8.1 percent drop from the 2011 game,
according to USA Today. The game drew boos from fans in
attendance and criticism from players.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers told ESPN Radio
after the game that some players on the National Football
Conference team “embarrassed themselves” with their lack of
effort.

“I’ll be honest with you, I was a little disappointed,”
Rodgers, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, said Jan. 31 on his
weekly ESPN Milwaukee show. “There should be some pride
involved in a game like that.”

Packers guard T.J. Lang, who has not played in a Pro Bowl,
called the game a “jog-through” on his Twitter page, adding
that he found Public Broadcasting Service’s “Antiques
Roadshow” more entertaining. Rodgers said that players treat
the game lightly because they are afraid of getting injured,
especially given that the league has no guaranteed contracts.

“I don’t know what the NFL can do to improve that tempo,”
Rodgers said. “Maybe offer more money for a victory than a loss
-- make the spread that much more.”

Players on the winning team each receive $50,000 for the
victory, while losing players are paid $25,000, according to the
radio station.